The Latin Scot

Do you mean "have all patrol member earn their Eagle," or "have all patrol members who are Eagles?" I can't tell if you are using Eagle in the nominal adjectival sense, or heaven forbid, as a verb, lol.

This one actually had 10 mini-modules covering the range of weather hazards - hail, tornados, extreme winds, et cetera, but each was short and full of useful information. I thought it was delightful, although I am also the person who thought the ACT's were "fun," so I may not be the best barometer in that regard.

Oh FINE then, LOL

Congratulations on completing two years of good and faithful service! You have a lucky Troop, and I hope they appreciate what you've accomplished. But there's really no need to slip in the whole scout of the year thing - we already know you're a great kid @ItsBrian; you don't need to pad your reputation with us.

That's the same kind of experience I had, and exactly what was going on when I was asked to be the Webelos leader. One of the first jobs of every new Scouter is to find out what isn't working, and fix it. Then you identify what is working, and nurture it, protect it, and help others master it as well!

I didn't take the previous online course (I took in person at University of Scouting), so I couldn't say. But it's very colorful, full of useful information, and it's pretty well-paced. I didn't get bored at all, as I have in some other online training courses. I recommend doing it sooner rather than later!

As a Webelos Den Leader, my duty and burdon is to ensure that every boy leaving my care enters his first Troop fully prepared to adapt to the Boy Scout program. Since the requirements of the Scouting Adventure adventure (ha ha ) and the rank of Scout are identical, every one of my boys should be able to earn his Scout rank within a week or two of crossing over. If not, that's my failing for not preparing him, not the Scout's. If I were to start looking for things the Troop could do for me, well, I would be out of luck - that's not their job. But I can make sure the boys they get from my Den ar

That Scouter from another district means well I am sure, but that kind of micromanaging doesn't just seem excessive - it seems obsessive to me. And it's a legitimate threat to Scouting as a program. Your system - in other words, THE BOY SCOUT PATROL METHOD (ta dum!) - WORKS because leadership is being handled by the boys, not by the adults. To be blunt, you shouldn't worry two figs over adults who just want things to do - Scouting is not for them, it's for the Scouts themselves. When fathers want to be more involved in the Troop, you get them on the camp outs, you get them to help with f

So, I just took this module - only lasted about 20 minutes, and if you've been in Scouting for a while most of the material should be familiar. But it's a colorful, engaging course with a lot of useful information, so frankly I rather enjoyed it and I am glad it's something all leaders will be required to take. No complaints about it from me.

The BSA didn't fight because there was nothing for them TO fight.The family interpreted the BSA's actions as revoking the boy's merit badges and demoting him in rank - neither of which happened. The ONLY legitimate, policy-related error on the BSA's part was at the Council level - they didn't follow the correct procedures for dealing with Scouts with disabilities, so when they had to take his advancement to the next step, at the National level, they found they had to go back and re-assess how they would proceed with his progress. The family, completely misunderstanding this (due to very poor c

Wait ... what exactly are people funding in this campaign? Lawyers' fees? Project costs? I am highly suspicious of this family's capitalizing off of their 15 minutes of fame. I need to contact my sources again and find out what is going on here.

I concur with @Chadamus ; some of those could find surprising uses, or if not that, at least loving collectors. Heck, I admit I am curious myself about what you have stored there! If there's anything interesting I claim first dibs! I have only barely begun to dip my toes in the vast world of Scouting collections, but whatever you have I would be curious to know abou!

Welcome to the forum! The boys in your watch will benefit HUGELY from all of your exciting Scouting experiences!

OH good grief, lol

Well good; I have nightmares of my Webelos Scouts coming to visit in a decade and finding that all of them are a foot taller than I am by then!

Wait ... haven't you said earlier that you're 16?! Mercy, I used to think being 5'8 (5'9 with good shoes) was pretty average, but in the past few years I have come to feel downright SHORT at times, lol.

Well, he wasn't all that clever - the legal team is back-tracking big time now since they have come to realize that, frankly, they don't have a case. They were pretty good at getting publicity, I'll give them that, but that only ended up working against them when they figured out they didn't have a legal leg to stand on.

I admit I have been very tempted to look into a Commissioner position should I ever get replaced as a den leader. It seems like the kind of volunteer work would love doing.

I have finally found a few friends in Utah who know this situation personally, both on the side of the family and a few people working in the council (it helps being part of the tight-knit LDS community sometimes ), and it seems clear that his merit badges were never revoked, nor was his membership in any kind of jeopardy - these were all fabrications of his lawyers who didn't understand how the BSA works and wanted to generate press to evoke public sympathy. In reality, what happened was that his project was initially approved, but then rejected the next day so that his standing could be revi

Because I am working with a group of active 10 year-olds, three of whom have learning disabilities, I have to make my transitions clear and routine - consistency is one of the most important parts of my meetings (as much as a Cub Scout meeting can be consistent at least ). As we gather the boys up for closing (always with a 5 and 1 minute warning), the shout is used as a kind of "last chance" to vent their energy for the evening. It's a short, call and reply shout - I yell "Archers aim high!" to which they respond "Bull's eye!" (we are the Merry Archer den of course lol) - and it lets them fee

I am in my early 30's, and I find absolutely nothing wrong with asking girls if a program gives them more time to spend with their mothers. I don't find it bigoted at all; in fact I think it is imperative that any youth program, of any kind, work to ensure that, whatever their aims, youth are given time to grow closer to their parents. Of course, they should also ask if they get to spend more time with their fathers as well, or their guardians or whomever cares for them - that's to be expected, and it is unusual that they don't continue with that line of thinking. It's a glaring oversight. But

In our Webelos den, we gather everybody up and quiet them with our den shout followed silently by the Scout Sign. Then, if there are any that week, we pass out fliers, hand-outs, newsletters, etc. while I or another leader shares a brief thought or saying. Following that we retrieve the colors and have a closing prayer. At this point the meeting is considered over. If there is a treat (which is only occassionally), these are distributed as they leave, and parents have time to come and ask me questions or bring up concerns while my assistant and I tidy up the room. Then I either check on t

This was all but inevitable. The BSA's policies regarding Scouts with disabilities have been clear for decades now; these lawyers obviously knew nothing about how the BSA actually works, and once they were given a solid understanding of it there was no way they would try to pursue such a flimsy case. But as has been mentioned, the cost of this whole debacle has been yet another opportunity to tarnish the reputation of the program.

This is one of the major benefits to having a year-round program that advances by age, not by school year. If a boy joins my group when he turns 10 in July, he has until the next July to earn his Webelos and/or his Arrow of Light. When he receives it, however, is entirely based on when he earns it. So, if he completes the requirements for his AofL in April, he earns it in April. I don't wait until there is a bigger group, nor do I put it off for some "special" event like the Blue and Gold - he earns it when he earns it. Not only does this prevent a boy from feeling left out if he does NOT